'When an ingenious #1 bestselling novelist, known for her rich themes, riveting plots, and empathetic characters, and one of the world’s most experienced leaders with inside knowledge on the global power players from top to bottom, team up to write a novel, the result is STATE OF TERROR, by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Louise Penny.'
About the Author/s
Hillary Rodham Clinton is the first woman in US history to become the presidential nominee of a major political party. She served as the 67th Secretary of State after nearly four decades in public service advocating on behalf of children and families as an attorney, First Lady, and US Senator. She is a wife, mother, grandmother, and No 1 Sunday Times bestselling author of seven previous books, all published by Simon & Schuster. Follow @HillaryClinton on Twitter
Louise Penny is an international award winning and bestselling author whose books have hit #1 on the New York Times, USA Today, and Globe and Mail lists. Her Chief Inspector Armand Gamache novels, published by Minotaur Books, an imprint of the St. Martin’s Publishing Group, have been translated into 31 languages. In 2017, she received the Order of Canada for her contributions to Canadian culture. Louise Penny lives in a village south of Montréal. Visit louisepenny.com
About the book
After a tumultuous period in American politics, a new administration has just been sworn in, and to everyone’s surprise the president chooses a political enemy for the vital position of secretary of state.
There is no love lost between the president of the United States and Ellen Adams, his new secretary of state. But it’s a canny move on the part of the president. With this appointment, he silences one of his harshest critics, since taking the job means Adams must step down as head of her multinational media conglomerate.
As the new president addresses Congress for the first time, with Secretary Adams in attendance, Anahita Dahir, a young foreign service officer (FSO) on the Pakistan desk at the State Department, receives a baffling text from an anonymous source. Too late, she realizes the message was a hastily coded warning.
What begins as a series of apparent terrorist attacks is revealed to be the beginning of an international chess game involving the volatile and Byzantine politics of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran; the race to develop nuclear weapons in the region; the Russian mob; a burgeoning rogue terrorist organization; and an American government set back on its heels in the international arena.
As the horrifying scale of the threat becomes clear, Secretary Adams and her team realize it has been carefully planned to take advantage of four years of an American government out of touch with international affairs, out of practice with diplomacy, and out of influence in the places where it counts the most.
To defeat such an intricate, carefully constructed conspiracy, it will take the skills of a unique team: a passionate young FSO; a dedicated journalist; and a smart, determined, but as yet untested new secretary of state and her best friend and counsellor.
State of Terror takes readers around the globe, through palaces and marble hallways, mountain caves and hotels, deserts and the gritty streets of the world’s cities, in a race-against-the-clock struggle to untangle the threads of a terror campaign and stop those bent on death and destruction.
Review
In a ruthless and cleverly planned political move Ellen Adams has made the choice to be the secretary of state for her political rival, but power means silence, because above all a loyal front must be presented to the world. The cost is high though, especially when give and take seems a little lopsided.
Before long she is drawn into a dark, manipulative conspiracy and plot, which threatens the country an people she values the most. A plot that draws its web across borders and through many countries.
It's not an easy thing to do, write a novel with another author or writer. Writing styles can make the read seem disjointed and alternate voices can be distinctly heard. Luckily Penny and Rodham Clinton fit together like a hand in a glove, so much so that the two entities are barely discernible, which means the story flows well.
Saying that, what the story definitely profits from is the very particular type of insight the experienced politician and stateswoman brings to the table. Giving the reader a look into a world the majority of us will never experience, and now and again there's a wee glimpse at the secrets behind the closed doors. I think it gives this political thriller an edge.
The combination of experienced storyteller and a woman who has earned her place in history, both iconic women in their own right, make this a perfect collaboration. Truth, reality, fact and fiction travel quite closely together on this rollercoaster of a read. Based on the last page, one can only hope this book is the first of many by the two of them. If this is the beginning of a series, I for one will be waiting with bated breath for the next one. It's a cracking read.
Buy State of Terror at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Pan MacMillan: pub date 12th October 2021 - Hardback £20. Also available in E book and Audiobook read by Joan Allen. Buy at Amazon com. At Waterstones.
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